Invention and use in the subject area is known to the public as a variety of patented cover and seat accessory devices are disclosed in the prior art. Some of these devices allow for the inexpensive conversion of a pickup truck from loading and hauling purposes to expanded seating capacity, and thus transform the pickup truck from a utility truck to a passenger and recreation vehicle.
This concept of increased vehicle seating capacity likely originated with the conception of the rumble seat. These seats, placed in the trunks of two-passenger automobiles, enjoyed immense popularity during the 1920's and 1930's. As in U.S. Pat. No. 2,880,033 to Alvin Lanier Shelton, these seats greatly reduced the driver's rear visibility, if not completely obstructing it, and rendered the storage capacity of the vehicle trunk useless. However, in U.S. Pat. No. 3,323,828 to Delbert E. Esche, the design of the rumble seat was altered so as to not significantly decrease the trunk's carrying capacity.
In 1974 Ronald Fellenstein adapted the premise of the rumble seat to be functional in the bed of a pick-up in U.S. Pat. No. 3,829,151. This invention consists of a tonneau cover and rumble seat-type assembly, wherein a tonneau cover is provided with an access opening and a convertible seat and closure are operatively associated with the tonneau cover. In one position the seat holds passengers in the box and the seat is movable to another position to close off the access opening. Unfortunately, this invention also brought along with it many of the same problems of the original rumble seats, namely reduced or completely obstructed driver visibility and limited storage space.
In 1988 in U.S. Pat. No. 4,750,778, inventor Edward Hoban introduced a convertible hard top/jump seat in which a pickup can be modified so that the roof section of the cab can be hingably detached from the front windshield and moved into a position behind the rear cab wall. When the roof is moved into this position it serves as a rearwardly facing jump seat. The truck bed would also be modified to offer a mechanism to secure the jump seat in place. While of very unique design, this invention seems to be rather impractical for actual application. Obtaining all the features necessary for proper functioning, such as the hingably moveable cab roof, would require extensive modification to the existing vehicle, a procedure that would prove to be quite costly. The other option would be to manufacture a pick-up with these features included, another costly undertaking.
Hence, in 1986, with U.S. Pat. No. 4,623,187, Aftab Ibrahim took a new direction in increasing the passenger capacity of a pickup truck. His truck insert is of a size to substantially fill and essentially eliminate horizontal movement in the truck bed and includes securing members for attaching to the truck to secure against vertical movement. The insert further includes forward and rearward sitting regions each having a seat for readily converting the truck bed to a seating area. While this does achieve the goal of adding additional seating capacity to a pickup, in doing so it eliminates the storage abilities of the truck bed as the insert covers the entire surface area and the back tail gate access. Additionally, this type of full-coverage insert results in an attachment that is both heavy and difficult to remove, making it even more difficult to conveniently utilize the storage potential of the bed.
In 1990 Scott Muirhead improved upon this design with a seat liner insert in U.S. Pat. No. 4,911,493. This invention is also an insert that covers the entire truck bed, but it is constructed so that the portion nearest the cab of the truck is formed into a rearwardly facing bench seat, extending just beyond and fully covering the wheel wells. The remaining part of the cover lies flat along the pick-up bed, allowing for some storage space. In addition, the seat back of the rear facing seat is hinged at the top and locked at the bottom to provide an additional, secure storage compartment. While this design does increase the storage capacity of the insert, it still has the inherent disadvantage present in Ibrahim's invention, which is that a full bed insert tends to be heavy and difficult to remove.
Finally, in 1992 William Lewis presented a portable truck bed seat with U.S. Pat. No. 5,139,301 that rid the need for a full-bed insert. His invention consists of any number of seating units to be secured in the bed of a truck. Each seat includes short legs and body-supporting cushions attached to an associated frame structure. Adjustable clamps are movably attached to the frame structures and these clamps are attached to the edges or lips of the truck beds to effectively lock the seats in position during use. While this does provide an easier method for removing the seats and a greater ability to utilize the truck bed's storage capacity, it still has a number of inherent problems, present in all prior art, that are remedied in the present invention.
First of all, none of the prior art includes a cover member that shelters the truck bed and its contents from the elements, nor do they include a locking mechanism so as to further secure said contents. Additionally, none of the prior art devices employ a tonneau cover hatch and seat assembly whose individual components are sufficiently light enough to allow rapid installation and removal by one person. Moreover, none of the prior art devices are sufficiently versatile so that the truck bed can function both as a cargo compartment together with an expanded seating capacity without requiring removal or extensive alterations of the modifying components.
Also, the prior art devices do not reduce the wind resistance along the rear of the truck, but instead, many deflect air and occasional debris into the passengers area. The present invention includes features, such as a hingably mounted windshield, and is constructed in such a way as to shield the passengers from the uncomfortable wind resistance. Finally, none of the prior art make provisions to keep obstruction of the driver's rear-view visibility to a minimum, while the new invention is designed so as to keep the passenger seating low to the truck bed to keep maximum visibility.
Preferably, a truck conversion should increase the seating capacity of the truck bed in an aesthetically pleasing way that avoids obstructing the rear view of the driver, while being safe and comfortable for the passengers. The present invention fulfills these needs and provides further related advantages.